Union City dedicates plaza that honors history as 'Embroidery Capital of the World'

Union City named a portion of New York Avenue “Embroidery Plaza” last night to commemorate the city’s once-thriving embroidery industry.

“It’s important we remember our history and make it part of our future,” Union City Mayor Brian Stack said from a podium at Embroidery Plaza, which is between 30th and 31st streets.

The square, he said, is a tribute to “the great richness of the people of our city and the wonderful people who lived here in the past and the wonderful contributions they made.”

The city was once known as “the Embroidery Capital of the World.”

The moniker dates to the early 20th century, city historian Gerard Karabin said.

Dr. Robert Reiner of Weehawken was a German immigrant who came to the United States in 1903, he said. Seeing the potential of the embroidery industry, he persuaded a German manufacturer of enormous embroidery machines to make him sole distributor in North Jersey.

Reiner began the mass importation of the machines and as embroidery mills were established in Union City, immigrants settled where the work was, driving the city’s growth, Karabin said, adding there were also smaller producers of handmade embroidery.

The enormous machines vibrated violently and Union City's bedrock gave it a leg up because they could be bolted down, he said.

By the 1980s, though, the city’s embroidery industry was dying due to competition from abroad.

The square features a colorful “Embroidery Tree” sculpture made from parts of an embroidery machine by Marco Designs, a woodworking firm, as well as a Singer sewing machine from the early part of the last century.

The event ended with a performance by the West Hudson Opera.

The Union City Marine Corps Junior ROTC's color guard presented flags during the singing of "The Star-Spangled Banner."